Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi starring superstar Alia Bhatt in the lead is up for its worldwide theatrical release on 25th February. It is one of the most awaited Hindi releases of 2022 along with the likes of Laal Singh Chaddha, Brahmastra, Bachchan Pandey etc. But what do we feel about it’s promotional strategy?
Considering Gangubai Kathiawadi is Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s return to silver-screen after the very controversial blockbuster Padmaavat (2018), there isn’t enough promotion going on the ground for the film. This is quite unusual for an SLB musical. Be it Goliyon ki Raasleela Ramleela, Bajirao Mastani Or Padmaavat , the promotional campaign was all over on prime-time TV, be it the music album, reality shows, launches or controversies. They were actively promoted like any other event film.
While Gangubai Kathiawadi album is a breathe of fresh air for all right reasons it seems like the masses haven’t quite picked up on the beats besides Dholida. Now this is a concern because controversies hyped ‘Ghoomar’ to the moon and back that helped Padmaavat big time. Gangubai Kathiawadi is a magnum Opus led by a female superstar. A film of this scale rightfully deserved a well planned promotional strategy. Alia Bhatt has promoted SS Rajamouli’s ‘RRR’ that has a stacked star-cast already more on ground than the film she headlines on her own. The movie had sky high buzz post it’s trailer release. Streaming rights apparently bagged by Netflix India for around 100 Crores, Gangubai Kathiawadi trailer clocked 68 Million views in hardly two weeks. The highest ever for a film headlined by a female superstar. But the promotional campaigns followed hasn’t really kept the steam up well.
With no controversies to fuel it’s buzz and an underrated music album, are Gangubai Kathiawadi promotions on the ground intentionally lacklustre? Will lacklustre promotions affect box-office collections of the film like it did to 83-The Film? We are not doubting Sanjay Leela Bhansali or Alia Bhatt here. But the commercial returns of the film can make or break things for women centric big budget films in Bollywood.